I found a nice simple article called “10 Things You Didn’t Know bout Salsa Dancing” on a webiste called GoArticles.com by Vanessa Wennerstrom.

It does a nice job of explaining some great benefits and the history of salsa.

Here it is:

“10 Things you didn’t know about Salsa dancing by Vanessa Wennerstrom

Salsa dancing, like salsa dip, is hot, hot, hot! Here are a few things you might not know about the wonderful and sensuous dance that is the Salsa…

1) On average, you can hope to burn around 350 calories an hour whilst Salsa Dancing. That’s a great reason to get yourself off the couch and start grinding those hips.

2) Salsa dance music usually has 180 to 210 beats per minute (no wonder you can burn so many calories!).

3) The origins of salsa dancing are widely disputed as it is a fusion of a number of different influences. It is generally accepted that the Salsa we know today was mainly developed in the Latin Quarter of New York City.

4) Salsa dancing does not travel the floor, in general, salsa dancers aim to keep their feet less than one foot apart – this of course excludes the occasions where your leg is draped over your partner’s shoulder!

5) Salsa is considered a Club or Street dance and so is not part of the ballroom dance curriculum.

6) The Einstein Aging Study found that dancing was the only one out of eleven physical activities they studied which helps prevent dementia. The reasons for this could be:

- The need to learn and remember the sometimes complicated moves and sequences.

- The positive social interaction.

- The relaxation and pleasure.

- The sense of accomplishment and confidence boosting when mastering a new skill.

These are all good for the brain and Salsa ticks all those boxes, so that’s another good reason to start dancing the fabulous Salsa.

7) Salsa is the Spanish word for sauce.

8) Salsa is one of the main dances in Cuba and Puerto Rico.

9) In an attempt to get into the record books for the Longest Non-Stop Salsa Dance, a Salsa Marathon took place in Malaysia in 2007. The dance which lasted for 14 hours raised funds for the Ronald McDonald Children’s Charities and involved 250 dancers, both local and from several other countries including Cuba, South Africa, Japan and South Korea (I wonder how many collective calories were burned off that day…).

10) In the 1988 film ‘Salsa’, the character Rita is seen climbing onto Kent’s motorcycle wearing a blue backpack; in the shot showing them riding around a field, her backpack has mysteriously changed to pink.”